NSSO survey: Among durables, households spend highest on vehicles

The survey covered 47,535 households in rural areas and 36,065 households in urban areas

Households spent the highest proportion of their consumer durable expenditure on vehicles during 2014-15 (July-June), according to a study by the National Sample Survey Office.

The study, Key Indicators of Household Expenditure on Services and Durable Goods, was based on a survey carried out by the National Sample Survey Organisation. The survey collected information on household expenditure from July 2014 to June 2015. It covered 47,535 households in rural areas and 36,065 households in urban areas

Within the durable goods category, households allocated the most to expenditure on transport equipment. In rural areas, expenditure on transport equipment accounted for 83 per cent of total expenditure on durable goods when the purchase was done mainly for enterprise purpose. It was followed by expenditure on heating, cooling and electricity generation devices, information technology (IT) communication devices and productive equipment accounted for four per cent of the budget separately.

 

For domestic consumption, too, households allocated the highest share to transport equipment, at 45 per cent. It was followed by jewellery (23 per cent) heating, cooling and electricity generation devices and IT and communication devices (both at seven per cent each).

A similar pattern was observed in urban areas. Expenditure on transport equipment accounted for a lion’s share of total expenditure on durables, followed by expenditure on heating, cooling and electricity generation devices (about 7.9 per cent) and IT and communication devices (7.8 per cent) for enterprises and jewellery for domestic consumption.

In the miscellaneous consumer services category, which includes items such as communication services, domestic and business services, households spent the most on communication services.

According to the report, “In rural areas, communication services accounted for the highest share (25.3 per cent) followed by barber & beauty shops (11. per cent), TV & radio services (10.6 per cent), repair & maintenance (10.3 per cent) and tailoring services (10.2 per cent).”

In urban areas, too, communication services accounted for the highest share of budget at 26 per cent. It was followed by domestic services (12.1 per cent), TV & radio services (10.2 per cent) and recreational & cultural services (9.9 per cent). In absolute terms, rural and urban households spent Rs 36.3 and Rs 102.5, respectively, on communication.

Roughly two-thirds of households in rural and urban areas travel by buses and trams, according to a new report released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. In rural areas, households spend on an average Rs 43 on buses and trams, while their urban counterparts spend Rs 95 on travel through this mode of transport.

Auto-rickshaws are the second most widespread mode of transport, with 38 per cent of rural households and 47 per cent of urban households reported having used. It is followed by taxi, railways and rickshaws. Urban households spend 12.5 per cent on railways while rural households spend a fraction of that amount at 4.4 per cent. Put together, these modes of transport account for more than 90 per cent of household expenditure on transport.